“Soul and Soil”: NYC’s Metrograph Celebrates Ukraine’s Cinematic Legacy

A celebration of Ukrainian poetic cinema is unfolding in New York City from November 8 to 16, as Metrograph presents the retrospective Soul and Soil, organized in collaboration with the Dovzhenko Centre and Razom Cinema.

Metrograph is a gem in New York City’s film culture. Located on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, it’s known for its curated, auteur-driven programming and devotion to film as an art form. With its signature focus on cinematic craft and history, the venue will screen eight landmark Ukrainian films on DCPs courtesy of the Dovzhenko Center and 35mm prints imported from Ukraine.

The lineup spans from 1930 to 1989 and showcases some of the most striking works from the Dovzhenko Centre’s archive. Among the featured titles is Earth (1930) by Oleksandr Dovzhenko, also included are Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1965) by Serhiy Parajanov, Well for the Thirsty (1965), Evening on the Eve of Ivan Kupala (1968), The White Bird Marked with Black (1971), and Swan Lake. The Zone (1989) by Yuriy Illienko. Rounding out the selection are Stone Cross (1968) by Leonid Osyka and Babylon XX (1979) by Ivan Mykolaichuk.

Following the theater run, all films will become available for streaming on Metrograph At Home starting December 1.

The opening event in New York City featured a screening of Earth with DakhaBrakha’s soundtrack, introduced by a live performance from Ukrainian Village Voices—a polyphonic folk choir based in NYC.

This retrospective coincides with a major exhibition at the Dovzhenko Centre in Kyiv, titled In the Grandiose Dance of the Sun, in the Cosmic Roar of Torment. Opened on October 24 and running through December 28, 2025, the show reimagines poetic cinema not as a static tradition, but as a living, sensory experience, explored through dance-based visual essays.

The exhibit features film fragments, archival posters, and behind-the-scenes photos, and highlights the work of filmmakers such as Roman Balayan, Leonid Osyka, Serhiy Parajanov, Oleg Biyma, and Yuriy Illienko, among many others.

Previously, it was reported that the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, one of Europe’s most prestigious documentary film festivals, will showcase five Ukrainian films in its 2025 edition, taking place from November 13—23.

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